DHH: Deadly amoeba found in second parish

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) testing discovered traces of the deadly brain-eating Naegleria fowleri amoeba in a DeSoto Parish water system, according to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals.

CDC testing found the amoeba in five locations in DeSoto Parish Waterworks District No. 1, one of 14 systems in the parish. The Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals announced the findings Tuesday night.

DHH officials said the additional testing was done after the amoeba was found in the St. Bernard Parish water system in September. It was the first discovery of the amoeba in a municipality water system at the time. A 4-year-old boy died after being infected with the amoeba following a visit to the parish in July.

DeSoto Parish has a history with the amoeba. The area was the site of one of two Naegleria fowleri-related deaths in 2011. The second of which happened in St. Bernard Parish when a man used a Neti Pot.

At the time of the 2011 deaths, the presence of the amoeba was found in neither St. Bernard or DeSoto Parish water systems. However, the DHH said Tuesday that more advanced sampling technology is now available.

CDC officials point out incidences of infection are extremely rare. Infection cannot occur from drinking water.

The following are precautionary measures the CDC recommends people take to avoid the deadly amoeba:

*Do not allow water to go up your nose or sniff water into your nose when bathing, showering, washing your face or swimming in small hard plastic/blow-up pools.

*Do not jump into or put your head under bathing water, walk or lower yourself in.

*Do not allow children to play unsupervised with hoses or sprinklers, as they may accidentally squirt water up their nose. Avoid slip-n-slides or other activities where it is difficult to prevent water going up the nose.

*Do run bath and shower taps and hoses for 5 minutes before use to flush out the pipes. This is the most important the first time you use the tap after the water utility raises the disinfectant level.

*Keep small hard plastic/blow-up pools clean by emptying, scrubbing and allow them to dry after each use.

*Use only boiled and cooled, distilled or sterile water for making sinus rinse solutions like a Neti pot.

*Keep your swimming pool adequately disinfected before and during use.

LOUISIANA WATER SYTEM. THIS TIME IT'S BEEN FOUND IN DESOTO PARISH. THE C-D-C SAYS THE PRESENCE OF THE NAEGLERIA FOWLERI AMOEBA WAS FOUND IN FIVE PLACES IN THE DESOTO PARISH WATERWORKS DISTRICT - NUMBER ONE. WDSU REPORTER BLAKE HANSON LOOKED INTO THE PARISH'S HISTORY WITH THE AMOEBA...AND IS LIVE NOW WITH MORE. BLAKE? THIS ALL TIES BACK SOMEWHAT TO WHAT HAPPENED IN ST. BERNARD PARISH. YOU'LL REMEMBER THE AMOEBA WAS LINKED TO THE DEATH OF A FOUR-YEAR-OLD BOY WHO VISITED VIOLET IN JULY. THAT GOT OTHER PARISHES...AND THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HOSPITALS AND C-D-C TESTING ALL ACROSS THE STATE. IN DESOTO PARISH ...THE CDC STUMBLED UPON THE AMOEBA. THE D-H-H SAYS IT WAS FOUND NOT ONCE... BUT IT FIVE DIFFERENT LOCATIONS IN WHAT'S CALLED WATERWORKS DISTRICT NUMBER ONE. IT IS ONE OF FOURTEEN WATER SYSTEMS IN THE PARISH. DESOTO PARISH IS VERY FAR AWAY...BUT THE C-D-C AND D-H-H DECIDED TO ADDITIONAL TESTING THERE... BECAUSE DESOTO HAS A HISTORY WITH THE AMOEBA. A PERSON DIED AFTER BEING INFECTED WITH THE AMOEBA IN THE PARISH IN 2011. AGAIN...WE WANT TO REMIND FOLKS... INFECTION BY THE AMOEBA IS RARE. THE C-D-C SAYS IT CANNOT OCCUR BY DRINKING WATER. INFECTION OFTEN OCCURS WHEN THE WATER GETS UP THE NOSE...AND BY THERE ENTERS THE BRAIN. DESOTO PARISH LEADERS TELL THE D-H-H THEY WILL BEGIN FLUSHING OUT THE WATER SYSTEM WITH CHLORINE STARTING THIS MORNING. SIMILAR TO WHAT ST. BERNARD PARISH IS CONTINUING TO DO...TO ENSURE THERE ARE NO MORE TRACES OF THE DEADLY AMOEBA IN THE WATER SUPPLY. SULA?